


Scrooge and Marley

by rubygirl29



Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Christmas, Gift Fic, M/M, Memories
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-21
Updated: 2012-12-21
Packaged: 2017-11-21 20:37:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,939
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/601819
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rubygirl29/pseuds/rubygirl29
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It isn't as if they are a family, but sometimes it feels like they are.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Scrooge and Marley

**Author's Note:**

> I'm including a graphic because the story is short. Merry Christmas to all!

[](http://s668.photobucket.com/albums/vv46/library_rose/?action=view&current=ScroogeandMarley-1.jpg)

It isn't like they are a family, Bruce thinks, not in the true sense of the word; but then, most of them have never had a traditional family. Yet, here they are on Christmas Eve, six months after the attack on the helicarrier, closer to each other than to their blood families. They're full of rib roast and Yorkshire pudding, coffee and a magnificent trifle. Stark's housekeeping bots are clearing the holiday table; the soft ring of china and silver adding to the atmosphere. There are presents under the seven-foot tree and a fire blazing in the fireplace. For a group of adrenaline-fueled superheroes, they are uncharacteristically calm. 

Bruce can understand their aura of peace. He knows some of their stories: Clint has told him of his sad childhood of poverty and abuse. Bruce knows how scarred he is by the past and the near loss of the love of his life. Clint is sitting on the floor, his head resting on Phil Coulson's knees, while Coulson's fingers move gently through his hair. Phil's eyes meet Bruce's. Coulson, who of all of them, has a family he loves, is still happier with _this_ family, happiest because Clint is there, quiet and tame, asking for nothing more than this moment. They'll leave in the morning to drive to Maryland where Phil's family will undoubtedly have the sort of holiday Barton could only imagine as a child. 

Natasha is curled up next to Cap, her head on his shoulder as they watch _The Nutcracker_ on Cap's StarkTablet. Bruce doesn't know what her memories are. The Red Room has left her damaged, uncertain of her past. He hopes she is building new memories, real ones, happy ones. She has been a good friend to him, once the _other guy_ stopped trying to kill her. He thinks it's kind of funny that she would settle next to Steve, of all people. The man from the past and the woman who doesn't believe in the future. 

Thor and Jane were here earlier, but he's whisked her off somewhere ... something about Vermont and an Inn to see where _White Christmas_ was supposedly filmed. Bruce had tried to tell him that it was filmed on a back lot in Hollywood, before Jane warned him off. Apparently, she hadn't wanted the God of Thunder to lose his illusions of Christmas on Earth -- though judging from the blush on Jane's cheeks, she had no illusions about why she wanted Thor to herself while he was on Earth. 

Bruce's stomach is full, he's warm and comfortable. The tree Pepper picked out is perfect, and she has managed to keep Tony from applying any Stark tech to the ornaments. Visions of tiny Avenger ornaments zipping around the branches is enough to make Bruce feel slightly queasy. Speaking of Tony ...

Bruce looks around, not seeing him. He's been, for Stark, uncharacteristically quiet. He had been sitting with them a minute ago, but seems to have gone AWOL while Bruce was lost in his thoughts. Bruce looks into the shadows, the kitchen, the bar area, and finally finds him on the newly enclosed balcony. He might just be admiring his handiwork which has turned the outside balcony into a glass-enclosed bubble suspended in the sky, which a view to die for, but Bruce is getting a different vibe from him. 

He looks ... lonely, standing there with all the world spread before him. He seems vulnerable. There is no armor for his heart, not even when it is surrounded by an arc reactor. Tony would say he doesn't have a heart, but Bruce thinks it's not that he doesn't have a heart, it's that it's too big to be contained in the hollow of his body. _That_ is the best-kept secret in the Stark arsenal. 

Bruce gets up quietly, leaving the others. They don't seem to notice. He goes out to the balcony and stands next to Tony. "It's lovely. Quite a present to all of us."

"I'm surprised Barton hasn't moved his blankets out here already," Tony smiles. "Though perhaps Agent has something to do with forestalling that."

"Give him time." Bruce isn't sure about the balcony and he wishes Tony would step inside. Everything seems too fragile; a spider web of glass and steel. He notices these things now, even when the "other guy" is in abeyance, he's always aware of impending damage and the danger within. "Listen, I'm not so good with heights, so come inside?"

"Not yet. Everybody looks so relaxed. I don't want to get the kids all wound up on Christmas Eve."

"They're waiting to open their presents. I saw Barton start shaking boxes until he realized that they might actually explode. He's like a five year old."

"That's why he has Agent." Tony smiles fondly. "Who would have guessed that?"

"Who would have guessed that you and I would hit it off?"

"Your alter ego and my ego are about the same size ... at least that's what Pepper tells me when she's annoyed at something I've done. Then I have to buy her some ridiculously extravagant present so she'll continue running my company." He sips at his drink thoughtfully. "What do you think about diamonds?"

Bruce chokes back a laugh. "They're hard and cold. Give her something like ... oh, name a star after her."

"That's disgusting," Tony says. "So teenage."

"Really? I thought it was romantic."

"Yeah, when we were sixteen. I think the diamonds were a better idea. Or ... " Tony perks up. "A shopping trip to Paris ... with Natasha."

"What has Paris ever done to you?" Bruce laughs quietly. 

"So, what was the best Christmas present you ever got?" Tony asks out of the blue. "Seriously. What made Christmas special?"

Bruce cocks his head, considering. "Hmm ... my dad got me a chemistry set. Though when I look back on it, maybe it wasn't such a good idea."

Stark smiles at that. "There is a certain irony in that." He gives Bruce a sidelong look. "What was it like, being you? I mean, before."

"My family ... my dad was a teacher and my mom stayed at home. We didn't have a lot of money, but that year was difficult. My mom had just had my sister and there were hospital bills piling up. I didn't think I'd get anything but some Hot Wheels and candy. Which was fine, really. But on Christmas morning, there was this big box under the tree. There was a microscope, slides, chemicals, a book of experiments. My dad said, 'I think you'll do great things in the future. This is your first step.' All I wanted was to make him proud. After dinner, I set the basement rug on fire. I think maybe he should have stuck with the Hot Wheels."

Tony chokes on his drink. "Really? Did he take the set away?"

"He made me clean it up -- it was only a little bigger than a cigarette burn -- and then he put the set away until we could read through the directions and follow them. He was smart, but he wasn't perfect. That was the last Christmas I remember being happy. After, either I was old enough to see his flaws, or they got worse. He became bitter, frustrated. He started drinking. Eventually, he became abusive to me, to my mom, to my sister. Good times."

Tony looks stricken. "I'm sorry, really. I didn't know."

Bruce tries to shrug off the memories. He forces his hands to relax, takes a deep breath. He really wasn't anywhere near hulking out, but the memories still cut deep. He changes the subject, looks at Tony. "What was it like being you?" Bruce has a good imagination, but it's hard to wrap his head around Tony as a child and holidays with the unlimited Stark budget. 

Tony's mouth curves. He takes a deep breath. "I forger, sometimes, how utterly lavish Christmas was -- anything I wanted. Chemistry sets, erector sets, calculators, then computers and engineering tools."

"No ponies?"

Tony's smile is slightly predatory. "Howard believed in horsepower of a different kind. My first car was a Corvette -- I mean _what_ was he thinking? He said he was starting me out slow ... When I was eighteen it was a Porsche. There was always something spectacular. I think he was trying to make up for my mom not being there when I was little. Then when I got older, the old man wasn't there every year -- off on some wild goose chase. But there was always something outrageous for me. I think Jarvis -- the real one -- was rather appalled and disapproving. Then there were the Christmases when it was just me, Jarvis and a houseful of servants. Good times." Tony repeats Bruce's words and makes a wry toast to him. He takes a drink and looks like he'd like to smash the crystal against the shatterproof glass enclosing the balcony. 

Bruce catches his hand. "You're not your father, and we're hardly children. I think we can survive Christmas without doing irreparable damage." 

"Yeah, look at us, all grown up. God, I love an optimist." He downs the whiskey with a practiced flick of the wrist and Bruce winces. "Relax, big guy. I'm nowhere near drunk. Pepper would kill me." He claps Bruce on the back. "You need a refill on that lovely non-alcoholic whatever you're drinking. Who knew Natasha would know about drinks that don't include vodka?" 

"You should try one."

"I'm good. Really." He sways slightly, and Bruce steadies him. "In the long run, Christmas kind of sucks." 

"Will you look at what you have instead of what you missed?" He turns Tony with rough hands. "You have _friends_ who would die for you, for each other. Coulson is living proof of that. And Clint? He _never_ gave up hope. He never stopped loving him. He'd say that this is the best Christmas of his life. Cap? He's looking pretty happy for a guy who missed out on seventy Christmases. Natasha doesn't look like she wants to kill somebody, so that's a plus."

Tony's eyes narrow, "What about you?"

"Me? I get a day when I'm totally mellow and all's right with the world."

"Wait a second ... is your middle name _Marley_?"

"Only on Christmas, _Ebenezer_." He nudges Tony. "Come on in and enjoy the company of friends. This isn't the night to be alone."

There is a peal of laughter from inside. Natasha is holding a sprig of mistletoe over Clint's head, and Coulson has swooped down to plant a kiss on his lips. Clint snatches the mistletoe and holds it over Cap's head, winking at Coulson as he shoves Natasha into Steve's arms. Pepper claps her hands, laughing. She takes the mistletoe and pitches it at Tony.

"No. No! I am _not_ kissing you," he warns Bruce as he snatches it out of the air. 

Bruce just laughs, and Tony can't remember ever hearing that sound from Banner. He decides that is the present he was hoping for; the one they were all wishing for their scientist. It is a gift Tony couldn't have purchased with all of his money. 

He holds out his hand. "Thanks, Marley."

Banner blinks and smiles widely. "You're welcome, Scrooge." He takes Tony's hand in a warm clasp. "Merry Christmas."

"And God bless us every one." Tony rolls his eyes, mocking himself for saying it. "Let's open presents!" The slightly manic gleam is back. Bruce shakes his head and lets Tony drag him back into the main room. He looks back, and it's starting to snow, flakes melting on the glass and sparkling in the city lights. 

**The End ******


End file.
